Customized Article Type

ABSTRACT

A method of making an article of footwear is disclosed. The method may include the steps of selecting a family of article types, selecting a customized article type, manufacturing an article of footwear with the customized article type and shipping the article of footwear to a pre-designated shipping address. The customized article type can be configured with a user selected characteristic. The method can also include limiting the number of article types displayed to a user at any time.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/829,741, filed Mar. 25, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 15/948,138, filed Apr. 9, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No.10,617,178, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.14/609,622, filed Jan. 30, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,949,534, which is acontinuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/327,312, filed Dec. 15,2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,009,614. The content of the above notedapplications is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for anyand all non-limiting purposes.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates generally to footwear, and in particularthe present invention relates to a method of making an article offootwear.

Articles of footwear may generally comprise an upper and a sole. Thesole may include an outsole, a midsole and/or an insole. The upper maybe used to secure the sole to the foot.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, a method of customization for an article of footwearincludes receiving a selected family of article types and providing aset of article types according to the family of article types. Eacharticle type in the set of article types has a different height.Providing the set of article types includes sending information relatedto the set of article types to a program running on a computing system.The information related to the set of article types is configured foruse in visibly representing the set of article types within the program.The method further includes receiving a user selected article type fromthe set of article types and manufacturing the article of footwearcorresponding to the user selected article type, the article of footwearhaving a height corresponding with the user selected article type.

In another aspect, a method of customization for an article of footwearincludes receiving a selected family of article types. The methodfurther includes providing a set of article types according to thefamily of article types, where each article type in the set of articletypes has a different upper mesh spacing size and where providing theset of article types includes sending information related to the set ofarticle types to a program running on a computing system. Theinformation related to the set of article types is configured for use invisibly representing the set of article types within the program. Themethod also includes receiving a user selected article type from the setof article types and manufacturing the article of footwear correspondingto the user selected article type. The article of footwear has an uppermesh spacing size corresponding with the user selected article type.

In another aspect, a method of customization for an article of footwearincludes providing a set of article types, where providing the set ofarticle types includes sending information related to the set of articletypes to a program running on a computing system. The informationrelated to the set of article types is configured for use in visiblyrepresenting the set of article types within the program. The methodalso includes receiving a user selected article type from the set ofarticle types and providing a group of variable article characteristicsfor the user selected article type, where each variable articlecharacteristic in the group of variable article characteristics has arange of values. At least one of the variable article characteristics inthe group of variable article characteristics is a sole density for asole of the article of footwear. The method further includes receivinginformation related to a user selected article characteristic for atleast one variable article characteristic in the group of variablearticle characteristics and manufacturing the article of footwearcorresponding to the user selected article type. The article of footwearhas the user selected article characteristic.

In another aspect, a method of customization for an article of footwearincludes providing a set of article types, where providing the set ofarticle types includes sending information related to the set of articletypes to a program running on a computing system. The informationrelated to the set of article types is configured for use in visiblyrepresenting the set of article types within the program. The methodfurther includes receiving a user selected article type from the set ofarticle types and providing a group of variable article characteristicsfor the user selected article type, where each variable articlecharacteristic in the group of variable article characteristics has arange of values. At least one of the variable article characteristics inthe group of variable article characteristics is a height for a sole ofthe article of footwear. The method also includes receiving informationrelated to a user selected article characteristic for at least onevariable article characteristic in group of variable articlecharacteristics and manufacturing the article of footwear correspondingto the user selected article type, the article of footwear having theuser selected article characteristic.

In another aspect, a method of customization for an article of footwearincludes providing information related to a first family of articletypes and a second family of article types, the second family of articletypes being different from the first family of article types. The methodalso includes receiving a selected family of article types correspondingto the first family of article types. The method further includesretrieving a maximum number of article types to be displayed andselecting a constrained number of article types of be displayed that isless than the maximum number of article types to be displayed. Themethod also includes providing a set of article types according to theselected family of article types, where each article type in the set ofarticle types has a different physical characteristic, and where thenumber of article types in the set of article types is equal to theconstrained number of articles types. Providing the set of article typesincludes sending information related to the set of article types to aprogram running on a computing system, where the information related tothe set of article types is configured for use in visibly representingthe set of article types within the program. The method also includesreceiving a user selected article type from the set of article types andmanufacturing the article of footwear corresponding to the user selectedarticle type.

Other systems, methods, features and advantages of the embodiments willbe, or will become, apparent to one with skill in the art uponexamination of the following figures and detailed description. It isintended that all such additional systems, methods, features andadvantages be included within this description, be within the scope ofthe embodiments, and be protected by the following claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments can be better understood with reference to the followingdrawings and description. The components in the figures are notnecessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustratingthe principles of the embodiments. Moreover, in the figures, likereference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout thedifferent views.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an illustrative embodiment of acustomization system;

FIG. 2 is an embodiment of a process for a customization system;

FIG. 3 is an embodiment of a detailed process for a customizationsystem;

FIG. 4 is an embodiment of a graphical interface system with articletypes representing families of articles of footwear;

FIG. 5 is an embodiment of a graphical interface system with customizedarticle types;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a customized article typeassociated with a position on a graphical slider that may be manipulatedby a customer;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a customized article typeassociated with a position on a graphical slider that may be manipulatedby a customer;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a customized article typeassociated with a position on a graphical slider that may be manipulatedby a customer;

FIG. 9 is an alternative embodiment of a graphical interface system witha set of a customized article types;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged view of an exemplary embodiment of a customizedarticle set;

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of an embodiment where a user can select asole material for an article type;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of an embodiment where a user can select anupper material for an article type;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of an embodiment where a user can select atoe cap for an article type;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of an embodiment where a user is shown apreview of a customized article type;

FIG. 15 is an exemplary embodiment of a manufactured pair of footwearwith a customized article type;

FIG. 16 is an exemplary embodiment of a portion of a database ofcustomized article types with an associated number manufactured and amanufacture limit;

FIG. 17 is an exemplary embodiment of a graphical interface systemdisplaying a customized article type that is no longer available;

FIG. 18 is an embodiment of a process for ensuring exclusivity ofcustomized article types; and

FIG. 19 is an embodiment of a process for allowing a user to determineif a customize article type may be shared with other users.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative embodiment ofcustomization system 101. The term “customization system”, as usedthroughout this detailed description, refers to a system formanufacturing articles of footwear that include a customized design ofsome kind. In some embodiments, the article may be customized by themanufacturer or a third party designer. In one embodiment, the articlemay be customized by the party purchasing the articles of footwear.

In one embodiment, customization system 101 comprises remote terminal100 connected to vendor 102 by way of network 104. Generally, remoteterminal 100 may be any type of computer, including either a desktop ora laptop computer. In other embodiments, remote terminal 100 may be anytype of device that includes a display, a processor, and an ability totransmit and receive data from a remote network. Examples of suchdevices include, but are not limited to, PDA's, cell phones, as well asother types of devices.

In this embodiment, vendor 102 represents a manufacturing systemconfigured to manufacture articles of footwear. Here, vendor 102 isshown as a single building for illustrative purposes only. In manycases, vendor 102 will comprise many buildings. In some cases, vendor102 may comprise many buildings that are disposed in differentgeographic locations. Generally, the term “vendor”, as used here, mayalso refer to distributors and/or suppliers. In other words, the term“vendor” may also apply to various operations on the manufacturing side,including the operations responsible for parts, labor, and/or retail ofthe article of footwear, as well as other manufacturing side operations.

In one embodiment, network 104 is configured to relay informationbetween remote terminal 100 and vendor 102. Generally, network 104 maybe a system allowing for the exchange of information between remoteterminal 100 and vendor 102. Examples of such networks include, but arenot limited to, personal area networks, local area networks, wide areanetworks, client-server networks, peer-to-peer networks, as well asother types of networks. Additionally, network 104 may support wiredtransmissions, wireless transmissions, or both wired and wirelesstransmissions. In some embodiments, network 104 may be a packet-switchedcommunications system. In one embodiment, network 104 may be theInternet.

In this embodiment, customization system 101 may include provisions thatallow a customer to select a customized article type for a pair offootwear that will be produced by a vendor. The term “article type”, asused throughout this detailed description, refers to a classification ofan article of footwear based on the general structure and physicalaspects of the article of footwear. In other words, the term “articletype” may include characterizations of articles of footwear including,but not limited to, running shoes, basketball shoes, soccer shoes,athletic shoes with cleats, hiking shoes, loafers, boots, sandals, workshoes, dance shoes, and orthopedic shoes.

Referring to FIG. 2, process 200 is an embodiment of a process of howcustomization system 101 may proceed. During first step 202, a customermay access a graphical interface system in order to select a customizedarticle type. Once the customer has accessed the graphical interfacesystem, the customer may select a customized article type during secondstep 204. Following this, the customized article type may bemanufactured according to the customer's selection during third step206. Finally, during fourth step 208, the customized article type offootwear may be shipped to the customer.

Referring to FIG. 3, customization system 101 may be best understood byseparating the steps associated with remote terminal 100 and thoseassociated with vendor 102. In some cases, those steps associated withremote terminal 100 are performed on or by remote terminal 100 and thosesteps associated with vendor 102 are performed on or by vendor 102.However, this is not necessarily the case, and some of the stepsassociated with remote terminal 100 may be performed on or by vendor 102or some other resource, and some of the steps associated with vendor 102may be performed on or by remote terminal 100 or some other resource.

In first step 302, a customer may access a graphical interface systemwith remote terminal 100. In some cases, the customer may access thegraphical interface system through a website. Here, the term “website”is used in the most general sense as meaning any collection of datalocated on a remote server accessible with a web browser of some kind.In many cases, a website may be a collection of web pages found on theWorld Wide Web. In one embodiment, the term “web page” may refer to anyHTML/XHTML document.

In one embodiment, vendor 102 includes a server of some type thatsupports a website with a graphical interface system. This graphicalinterface system may be used to design a customized article type. Insome embodiments, the graphical interface system may be a graphicaleditor of some kind. In one embodiment, the graphical interface systemmay provide a set of tools that allow the customer to easily select acustomized article type for an article of footwear.

In an alternative embodiment, a website supporting a graphical interfacesystem may be hosted outside of vendor 102. In other words, the websitemay be owned and run by a third party separate from vendor 102.Generally, the process of selecting a customized article type for anarticle of footwear may proceed as before. In this case, the finalizedcustomized article type information will be processed and sent to vendor102 by the third party.

Although a graphical interface system may be accessed via a websitethrough the Internet in one embodiment, in other embodiments, thegraphical interface system could be accessed in other ways. For example,in some embodiments, the graphical interface system could be rundirectly on a remote terminal. In other words, the graphical interfacesystem could be a program that can be installed on a remote terminal. Insome cases, the graphical interface system could be installed on apersonal computer of a customer. In other cases, the graphical interfacesystem could be installed on a remote terminal located at a retail storeor kiosk. In these cases, the graphical interface system may stillcommunicate with one or more vendors through a network, such as theInternet, in order to provide customer ordering information for thecustomized product. Additionally, in some cases, the remote terminalcould print order forms that could then be sent to one or more vendorsby a courier or a postal service.

Once the customer has accessed the graphical interface system, thecustomer may select a family of article types in second step 304. Theterm “family of article types”, as used throughout this specificationand in the claims, refers to a group of article types sharingsubstantially similar features. In one embodiment, article types may begrouped in families based on similar features including both colorand/or design. For example, articles colored black and silver could begrouped into one family, while articles colors blue and gold could begrouped into another family. In another embodiment, article types may begrouped in families based on similar technological features. Forexample, articles sharing a common technology to provide shockabsorption could be grouped in one family, while articles sharing acommon technology to provide increased cushioning to a portion of a solecould be grouped into another family.

It should be understood that a family of article types may include aspectrum of article types. For example, a family of article types with acommon design feature may contain article types such as a running shoeas well as a hiking boot. In addition, a family of article types canalso include different features as well as substantially similarfeatures.

It may also be possible for an article type to have membership inmultiple families. For example, an article type may be a member of afirst family based on technological features of the article type and amember of a second family based on color.

Following the selection of a family of article types, the customer mayselect a customized article type in third step 306. During fourth step308, the finalized customized article type may be submitted to vendor102. In some embodiments, the submission may be transferred through theInternet.

In fifth step 310, vendor 102 may receive and reviews the customizedarticle type. During sixth step 312, vendor 102 manufactures a pair offootwear with the customized article type. Following sixth step 312,vendor 102 may execute quality control procedures and inspects the pairof footwear with the customized article type during seventh step 314.Finally, in eighth step 316, vendor 102 ships the pair of footwear withthe customized article type to a pre-designated shipping address.

The following description discusses the details of the steps outlinedand briefly described with reference to FIG. 3. In some cases, acustomer has access to a remote terminal. Using the remote terminal, thecustomer may gain access to a website supplied by a vendor or a thirdparty. In some embodiments, the website may include a graphicalinterface system, as discussed briefly in first step 302.

The process of creating a customized type of footwear may begin with acustomer selecting one or more article types. In some embodiments, acustomer may select one or more article types from a list ofpre-selected article types. In some cases, this list can be provided bya vendor. In other embodiments, a customer may select two or morearticle types from a list of pre-selected article types. In oneembodiment, a customer may select a family of article types.

FIG. 4 is an embodiment of graphical interface system 400 that displaysfour families of articles of footwear. In particular, graphicalinterface system 400 displays first family 401, second family 402, thirdfamily 403 and fourth family 404. In other embodiments, graphicalinterface system 400 may display more or less families of articles offootwear. In some cases, graphical interface system 400 may providescroll bar 410 to allow a customer to view additional families offootwear. In other cases, graphical interface system 400 may includeother provisions to allow a customer to view additional families offootwear.

In one embodiment, each family of footwear is associated with aplurality of article types. In some embodiments, each family of footwearmay include two pre-selected article types. In other embodiments, eachfamily of footwear may include three pre-selected article types. Instill other embodiments, each family of footwear may include four ormore pre-selected article types. In this embodiment, each family isassociated with three pre-selected article types.

For the sake of clarity, the graphical images of the article types willbe referred to as article types, but it should be understood that thearticle types displayed by graphical interface system 400 are in factgraphical representations of actual articles of footwear. Additionally,throughout this specification, it should be understood that not only asingle article of footwear, but a pair of footwear may be designed withcustomization system 101. Any customized article types, as well asdesigns, tools, or other mechanisms applied to the design of one articleof footwear, may likewise be applied to a second, complementary, articleof footwear. The term “complementary”, as used throughout thisspecification and in the claims, refers to the association of a leftarticle of footwear with a right article of footwear and vice-versa.

In one embodiment, the three article types associated with first family401, second family 402, third family 403 and fourth family 404 sharecommon features. In this embodiment, the article types comprising firstfamily 401 may include a common design such as substantially similartrim designs. Although first family 401 includes article types with acommon design, first family 401 is also comprised of multiple articletypes. In particular, first family 401 is represented by first articletype 431, second article type 432, and third article type 433. In somecases, first article type 431 may be a walking shoe, second article typemay be a running shoe and third article type 433 may be a hiking boot.

In a similar manner, second family 402 may comprise article types with ablack and gold color scheme. Likewise, third family 403 may includearticle types employing a particular technological feature. Finally,fourth family 404 may include article types colored pink. In otherembodiments, first family 401, second family 402, third family 403 andfourth family 404 may be grouped based on other common features.

In one embodiment, graphical interface system 400 allows a customer toselect a family of article types to create a customized article type.Generally, graphical interface system 400 may be configured in anymanner to allow a customer to select a family of article types. In thisembodiment, graphical interface system 400 includes selection tool 420.Selection tool 420 is represented by a cursor configured as an arrow. Inother cases, selection tool 420 may include a different graphicalrepresentation. With selection tool 420, graphical interface system 400allows a customer to select a family of article types. In thisembodiment, a customer selects first family 401 with selection tool 420.

Following the selection of a family of article types, graphicalinterface system 400 may be configured to allow a customer to create acustomized article type based on the selected family. In someembodiments, a customer may select one or more article types from a listof pre-selected article types within the selected family. In oneembodiment, a customer may create a customized article type by firstviewing two representative article types of the selected family ofarticle types. In some cases, the two representative article types ofthe family may be the two representatives that are the most dissimilar.For example, two representative article types of a family of articletypes with a common design feature may be a first article type of arunning shoe with a low-top upper comprised of a wide spaced meshmaterial and light-weight sole and a second article type of a hikingboot with a high-top upper comprised of leather and a heavy-weight sole.With this arrangement, graphical interface system 400 is configured toallow a customer to create a customized article type that may be anintermediate type of the representative article types of the selectedfamily.

FIG. 5 is an embodiment of graphical interface system 400 following theselection of first family 401 in FIG. 4. In this embodiment, graphicalinterface system 400 displays two representative article types of firstfamily 401. In particular, graphical interface system 400 displays firstrepresentative article type 531 and second representative article type532 as representative article types of first family 401.

In one embodiment, first representative article type 531 and secondrepresentative article type 532 are two different article types. In thisembodiment, first representative article type 531 is a running shoe. Inone embodiment, first representative article type 531 includes alight-weight sole and a low-top upper with height H1. In contrast,second representative article type 532 is a hiking boot. In oneembodiment, second representative article type 532 includes a thick solewith treads and a high-top upper with height H2. In one embodiment,height H2 is greater than height H1. Using this arrangement, firstrepresentative article type 531 and second representative article type532 may provide dissimilar article types in order to allow a customer tocreate a customized article type that may be an intermediate typebetween first representative article type 531 and second representativearticle type 532.

Generally, graphical interface system 400 may be configured in variousways to allow a customer to create a customized article type that is anintermediate type between first representative article type 531 andsecond representative article type 532. In some embodiments, graphicalinterface system 400 may accept a user selected value from a customer inorder to create a customized article type that may be intermediatebetween first representative article type 531 and second representativearticle type 532. In an embodiment, graphical interface system 400 mayinclude a slider that may be manipulated by a customer to indicate acustomized article type that may be an intermediate type between firstrepresentative article type 531 and second representative article type532.

In this embodiment, graphical interface system 400 includes slider 515.Furthermore, slider 515 includes track 516 and indicator 517. In somecases, track 516 may be disposed horizontally between firstrepresentative article type 531 and second representative article type532. In other cases, track 516 may be disposed in another locationwithin graphical interface system 400. With this arrangement, indicator517 may be moved on track 516 to indicate a customized article typeintermediate between first representative article type 531 and secondrepresentative article type 532.

In the current embodiment, a customer may move indicator 517 on track516 to a position that may be associated with a customized article type.In other words, a customer may move indicator 517 closer to firstrepresentative article type 531 than second representative article type532 to create a customized article type more similar to firstrepresentative article type 531 than second representative article type532. Likewise, a customer may move indicator 517 closer to secondrepresentative article type 532 than first representative article type531 to create a customized article type more similar to secondrepresentative article type 532. Using this arrangement, a customer maymanipulate slider 515 to create a customized article type.

In some cases, positions on track 516 may be associated with customizedarticle types. In the current embodiment, indicator 517 is disposed infirst position 571 on track 516 that is associated with first customizedarticle type 551. In order to assist a customer in creating a customizedarticle type, first customized article type 551 may be displayed in anylocation within graphical interface system 400 when indicator 517 isdisposed in first position 571 on track 516. In this embodiment, firstcustomized article type 551 is disposed above indicator 517. Sinceindicator 517 is closer to first representative article type 531, firstcustomized article type 551 may be more similar to first representativearticle type 531 than second representative article type 532.

FIGS. 6-8 illustrate exemplary embodiments of customized article typesthat may be associated with different positions of indicator 517. Thecustomized article types illustrated in these embodiments are intendedto be exemplary. In addition, aspects of customized article types may bedifferent with various positions of indicator 517, although changes maynot be obvious in these exemplary embodiments. In other embodiments,positions of indicator 517 may be associated with different customizedarticle types.

As previously discussed, first position 571 may be associated with firstcustomized article type 551. Referring to FIG. 6, first customizedarticle type 551 is configured with height H3. In this embodiment,height H3 is greater than height H1 of first representative article type531. Similarly, height H3 is less than height H2 of secondrepresentative article type 532. In other words, height H3 has a valuebetween height H1 and height H2. Furthermore, in this embodiment, sincefirst position 571 is closer to first representative article type 531than second representative article type 532, height H3 is closer toheight H1 than height H2.

In some cases, as indicator 517 is moved to a position closer to secondrepresentative article type 532, a customized article type may becreated that closely resembles second representative article type 532.Referring to FIG. 7, indicator 517 is in second position 572 that iscloser than first position 571 to second representative article type532. In this embodiment, second position 572 may be associated withsecond customized article type 552. Second customized article type 552is configured with height H4. In some cases, height H4 of secondcustomized article type 552 is greater than height H3 of firstcustomized article type 551, since second position 572 is closer thanfirst position 571 to second representative article type 532 with heightH2.

Referring to FIG. 8, indicator 517 is in third position 573 that iscloser than second position 572 to second representative article type532. With this configuration, third position 573 may be associated witha customized article type that is more similar to second representativearticle type 532 than second customized article type 552 of the previousembodiment. In this embodiment, third position 573 is associated withthird customized article type 553 with height H5. Furthermore, height H5is greater than height H4 of second customized article type 552. Withthis arrangement, a customer may generate a customized article type witha specific height by selecting a position on slider 515. In addition,this configuration provides a means of fine tuning the process ofcreating a customized article type.

It should be understood that the article types of first representativearticle type 531 and second representative article type 532 differ inadditional properties other than height. For the sake of clarity, thediscussion regarding FIGS. 6-8 considers the heights of customizedarticle types. However, customized article types associated withdifferent positions on track 516 will differ with respect to otherproperties as well. The following embodiments illustrate multipledifferences between article types.

It is also possible that graphical interface system 400 may beconfigured in another manner to allow a customer to create a customizedarticle type based on a selected family of article types. In someembodiments, graphical interface system 400 may generate apre-determined set of customized article types based on the selectedfamily. With this arrangement, a customer may choose a customizedarticle type from a pre-determined set of customized article types.

FIGS. 9-10 illustrate an alternative embodiment of a process forcreating a customized article type following the selection of a familyof article types. Following the selection of first family 401 in FIG. 4,graphical interface system 400 displays a pre-determined set of articletypes based on first family 401. In this embodiment, graphical interfacesystem 400 displays first customized article type set 901.

Generally, first customized article type set 901 may contain any numberof customized article types. In some cases, the number of customizedarticle types within a customized article type set may vary depending onthe selected family of article types. In other words, some families ofarticle types may contain a greater number of customized article typesthan other families of article types. In this embodiment, firstcustomized article type set 901 includes five article types. Inparticular, first customized article type set 901 comprises firstcustomized article type 951, second customized article type 952, thirdcustomized article type 953, fourth customized article type 954 andfifth customized article type 955.

Graphical interface system 400 may display first customized article typeset 901 in any manner that may aid a customer in creating a customizedarticle type. In some embodiments, first customized article type set 901may be displayed by graphical interface system 400 so that article typesproximate to each other may be more similar than article types notdisposed proximately. In this manner, first customized article type set901 may be displayed as a spectrum of customized article types. In somecases, this arrangement of first customized article type set 901 mayassist a customer in selecting a customized article type.

In order to distinguish the greatest differences in customized articletypes within the selected family, first customized article type 951 andfifth customized article type 955 may be disposed the furthest distancefrom each other by graphical interface system 400. Similar to theprevious embodiment, first customized article type 951 and fifthcustomized article type 955 may be representative article typesrepresenting the selected family of article types. In this embodiment,first customized article type 951 may be a running shoe with a low-topupper comprised of a wide spaced mesh material and light-weight sole. Incontrast, fifth customized article type 955 may be a hiking boot with ahigh-top upper comprised of a tough exterior and a heavy-weight sole.

With first customized article type set 901 displayed as a spectrum ofarticle types, second customized article type 952, third customizedarticle type 953, and fourth customized article type 954 may bedisplayed between first customized article type 951 and fifth customizedarticle type 955 as intermediate customized article types. Specifically,second customized article type 952 may be displayed proximate to firstcustomized article type 951 to indicate a similarity between secondcustomized article type 952 and first customized article type 951. In asimilar manner, fourth customized article type 954 may be displayedproximate to fifth customized article type 955 indicating a similarityto fifth customized article type 955. Finally, third customized articletype 953 may be arranged between second customized article type 952 andfourth customized article type 954 to show that third customized articletype 953 is most similar to second customized article type 952 andfourth customized article type 954. In some cases, this arrangementassists a customer in creating a customized article type.

As described above, the customization process may include presenting auser with a set of article types from which the user may select adesired article type. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, a user ispresented with five possible article types from which the user canselect a desired customized article type. In general, the number ofcustomized article types presented to a user could vary in differentembodiments.

Some embodiments can include provisions for controlling the number ofcustomized article types presented to a user during the customizationprocess. For example, some embodiments may be configured so that thenumber of customized article types presented to a user is always equalto or greater than a predetermined minimum number. In some cases, theminimum number could be 1. In still other cases, the minimum numbercould be 2. In still other cases, the minimum number could be 3. Instill other cases, the minimum number could be 4 or greater than 4. Thisarrangement may enhance the user experience by ensuring that the user isgiven enough options for choosing a customized article type.

Some embodiments could include a maximum number of customized articletypes that can be presented to, or otherwise provided for, a user. Inother words, some embodiments may be configured so that the number ofcustomized article types that may be presented to a user is always lessthan or equal to the maximum number. In some cases, the maximum numbercould be 1. In other cases, the maximum number could be 2. In stillother cases, the maximum number could be any number greater than 2. Instill other cases, the maximum number could be 6. In still other cases,the maximum number could be 8. In still other cases, the maximum numbercould be 10. In still other cases, the maximum number could be 12. Thisarrangement may enhance the user experience by ensuring the user is notoverwhelmed with too many options when selecting a customized articletype.

It is also to be understood that some embodiments could control thenumber of options to be displayed to a user for any other customizablefeature where the user may be presented with multiple options. Inparticular, this method for controlling the number of options displayedfor a user is not limited to use with customized article types. Asdiscussed in further detail below, various different elements,components and/or characteristics of an article type can also becustomized. Examples of such customizable features include, but are notlimited to: trim elements, toe caps, heel counters, sole materials,upper materials, component colors, various kinds of graphical elementsas well as any other customizable elements, components orcharacteristics of an article type. Therefore, whenever a user ispresented with a number of options for selecting a customizablecomponent or characteristic, the number of options displayed to the usercould be constrained with a minimum value and/or maximum value.Moreover, the minimum value and/or the maximum value could varyaccording to the feature being customized.

FIG. 10 illustrates an enlarged view of an exemplary embodiment of firstcustomized article type set 901. This embodiment is intended to beexemplary. In other embodiments, first customized article type set 901may include customized article types with additional and/or differentproperties. For the sake of clarity, only some changing properties ofcustomized article types of first customized article type set 901 willbe discussed in this detailed description. In particular, some portionsof the customized article types of first customized article type set 901are enlarged in FIG. 10 to provide greater detail of particularproperties associated with first customized article type set 901.However, it should be understood that additional properties ofcustomized article types within first customized article type set 901could also differ.

As previously discussed, a family of article types may share asubstantially similar feature. In this embodiment, article types offirst customized article type set 901 may include a substantiallysimilar feature of a trim design. Specifically, the article types offirst customized article type set 901 include a design of trim thatwraps around a heel with ends disposed near a sole. In this embodiment,first customized article type 951, second customized article type 952,third customized article type 953, fourth customized article type 954,and fifth customized article type 955 include first trim design 911,second trim design 912, third trim design 913, fourth trim design 914,and fifth trim design 915, respectively.

In some embodiments, a substantially similar feature common in a familyof article types may vary in members of the family of article types. Inthis embodiment, the width of trim designs differ within article typesof first customized article type set 901. Specifically, first trimdesign 911 includes width W1. In a similar manner, second trim design912 has a width W2 that is greater than width W1 Likewise, third trimdesign 913 of third customized article type 953 includes width W2. Withthis arrangement, second trim design 912 and third trim design 913 bothhave a trim design of width W2. In contrast, fourth customized articletype 954 includes fourth trim design 914 with width W3. Width W3 isgreater than width W2 of second trim design 912 and third trim design913. Finally, fifth customized article type 955 includes fifth trimdesign 915 with width W4. Width W4 is greater than width W3 and allother widths of trim designs of article types of first customizedarticle type set 901. The differences in width of the trim designprovide variation with the common feature of trim design for customizedarticle types within first customized article type set 901.

In some cases, customized article types within first customized articletype set 901 will vary with respect to other properties. Generally,customized article types within first customized article type set 901will vary with respect to multiple properties. For example, in somecases, color schemes of customized article types within first customizedarticle type set 901 may vary. It is also possible that differentmaterials may be associated with a sole, midsole and/or upper ofcustomized article types of first customized article type set 901.

In this exemplary embodiment, uppers associated with customized articletypes of first customized article type set 901 may be constructed of amesh fabric. Furthermore, the mesh fabric may be configured withdifferent amounts of spacing between threads in some customized articletypes of first customized article type set 901. With this arrangement,some customized article types may be configured with a more breathablemesh upper with greater spacing between threads, while other customizedarticle types may be configured with less spacing between threads toprovide a tougher and more rigid upper.

In this embodiment, first upper 921 of first customized article type 951may be associated with a mesh with spacing S1 between threads. SpacingS1 is relatively large and provides first upper 921 with a degree ofbreathability. Similarly, second customized article type 952 and thirdcustomized article type 953 may include second upper 922 and third upper923, respectively. Second upper 922 and third upper 923 are constructedof a mesh with spacing S2 between threads. Spacing S2 is smaller thanspacing S1. Accordingly, this provides a greater stiffness for secondupper 922 and third upper 923. Finally, fourth customized article type954 and fifth customized article type 955 may be associated with fourthupper 924 and fifth upper 925, respectively. Fourth upper 924 and fifthupper 925 have a mesh with spacing S3 between threads. Spacing S3 issmaller than spacing S2. In some cases, spacing S3 between threadsprovides fourth customized article type 954 and fifth customized articletype 955 with tougher and more protective fourth upper 924 and fifthupper 925, respectively. Using this configuration, a customer has theopportunity to create a customized article type by selecting from avariety of uppers configured with adjustments in the spacing of thethreads of the mesh.

In a similar manner, customized article types within first customizedarticle type set 901 may be associated with soles exhibiting differentfeatures. In some embodiments, customized article types within firstcustomized article type set 901 may include soles constructed fromdifferent materials. In some cases, a first subset of first customizedarticle type set 901 may include soles comprised of a polymer, while asecond subset of first customized article type set 901 may include solescomprised of rubber to form a durable sole. In this exemplaryembodiment, customized article types of first customized article typeset 901 include soles constructed from the same material configured withdifferent densities.

In this embodiment, first customized article type 951 includes firstsole 971 with density D1. In some cases, density D1 is a relatively lowdensity that provides flexibility and a low weight to first sole 971.Similarly, second customized article type 952 and third customizedarticle type 953 include second sole 972 and third sole 973,respectively. Furthermore, second sole 972 and third sole 973 areconfigured with density D2 that is denser than density D1. With thisarrangement, second sole 972 and third sole 973 may be more rigid thanfirst sole 971 as well as a heavier weight. Finally, fourth customizedarticle type 954 and fifth customized article type 955 may be associatedwith fourth sole 974 and fifth sole 975, respectively. Fourth sole 974and fifth sole 975 are constructed with density D3. In some cases,density D3 is denser than density D2. This configuration imparts greaterweight, rigidity and hardiness to fourth sole 974 and fifth sole 975. Bychoosing between customized article types with fine adjustments in thedensities of the soles, a customer may create a customized article type.

In some embodiments, once a customer has selected a customized articletype, the customer may continue customizing the customized article typeusing graphical interface system 400. In some cases, the customer couldcustomize colors, add designs or otherwise further customize thecustomized article type. In some cases, graphical interface system 400can include additional tools for adding additional customized designs. Amethod for modifying articles in this manner is disclosed by David P.Jones et al. in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/612,320, filed Dec.18, 2006 and entitled “Method of Making an Article of Footwear”, theentirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

A customization system can include provisions for independentlyselecting various article characteristics. In other words, acustomization system can include provisions for allowing a user tochoose characteristics or properties such as sole density, upper meshdensity and toe cap size in an independent manner. Such properties orcharacteristics may be referred to as article characteristics, whichcorrespond to characteristics of a particular component. Moreover, onceselected by a user, the resulting article characteristic may be referredto as a user selected article characteristic.

FIGS. 11 through 13 illustrate various schematic views of articlecharacteristics that can be varied, according to at least oneembodiment. In some cases, upon selecting second upper 922 from articletype set 901 (see FIG. 10), a user may have the option of independentlyvarying various different article properties or characteristics. In somecases, a user may be have the option of selecting characteristics of thesole including, but not limited to: materials, density, weight, color,geometry as well as any other properties. For example, referring to FIG.11, a user may have the option of selecting between a first solematerial 1002, a second sole material 1004 and a third sole material1006 for article type 922. For example, in the current embodiment, theuser is selecting second sole material 1004 as the user selected articlecharacteristic. In some cases, first sole material 1002, second solematerial 1004 and third sole material 1006 may represent materials ofincreasing density. For example, in one embodiment, first material 1002may be a soft foam material, second material 1004 may be a medium foammaterial and third material 1006 may be a hard foam material. However,in other cases, the materials could vary in any other manner. Moreover,it will be understood that in other cases, a user may select betweensimilar materials that vary in size, shape and/or appearance. Stillfurther, a user could select between soles having different types ofcushioning, such as air bladders of varying pressures and/or othercushioning materials.

In some cases, a user may have the option to select different kinds ofmaterials for an upper. For example, referring to FIG. 12, a user mayselect between first upper material 1020, second upper material 1022 andthird upper material 1024. For example, in this case, the user mayselect third upper material 1024 as the user selected articlecharacteristic. In some cases, first upper material 1020, second uppermaterial 1022 and third upper material 1024 may correspond to uppermaterials with increasing mesh densities. In other cases, a user couldselect between uppers that vary in any other manner. In still othercases, a user could select between uppers of different sizes and/orshapes. In still other cases, a user could select between uppers ofvarying types of materials. For example, a user could select betweenuppers made of natural leather, synthetic leather, natural threads,synthetic threads, nylon, polyester, as well as other kinds ofmaterials.

In some cases, a user may have the option to select between differentkinds of supporting members. Examples of supporting members include, butare not limited to: toe caps, heel counters, heel cups, lacing systems,cushioning devices, straps as well as any other supporting members.Referring to FIG. 13, for example, a user may have the option ofselecting between three different sizes for a toe cap, including firsttoe cap size 1032, second toe cap size 1034 and third toe cap size 1036.In the current embodiment, as an example, the user may select first toecap size 1032 as the user selected article characteristic.

Although the current embodiments illustrate three possible options forvarious article characteristics, other embodiments could include anyother number of options. For example, in other cases, a user may selectbetween 2 or more options. In still other cases, a user may selectbetween four or more options. In still other cases, a user may bepresented with an approximately continuous range of options.

It will be understood that the presentation of options for articlecharacteristics, such as sole material and/or upper material, may be inany arrangement and/or order. For example, some embodiments may showsole materials in order of increasing density. Likewise, someembodiments may show upper materials in order of decreasing meshspacing. Still further, some embodiments may show toe caps in order ofincreasing length or size. However, in other embodiments these variousdifferent options could be presented to a user in any other arrangement.

In some embodiments, a system may automatically select a continuous ordiscrete range of options from which a user can select. For example, insome cases, upon selecting a sole from an article type, a system mayautomatically present the user with two or more options for varying solecharacteristics. In other cases, however, a user may initially selecttwo characteristic values (such as a low density foam and a high densityfoam), and the system may present a range of options between thesevalues.

Generally, the range or set of article characteristics presented to auser can be restricted to avoid designs that are not structurally soundand/or that are difficult to manufacture. For example, referring back toFIG. 13, a system may only give the user options for toe cap sizes thatare within the known dimensions for effective toe cap sizes. In otherwords, a user attempting to select a toe cap that extends back to theheel of an article may be prevented from selecting this option orotherwise informed that this particular toe cap size is not available.Likewise, in selecting upper mesh densities, as shown in FIG. 14, a usermay be restricted from selecting mesh sizes that are outside the rangeof suitable mesh sizes for various types of footwear. This allows asystem to help a user design articles with various characteristics thatare within known design parameters.

A customization system can include provisions that allow a user topreview a customized article type prior to submitting the customizedarticle type for manufacturing. Referring to FIG. 14, a user may beprompted with the option to finalize a design during a preview step ofthe customization process. During this step, the system may present avisual representation of the article including each of the user selectedarticle characteristics. In still other cases, however, the previewprocess may occur simultaneously as various article characteristics areselected. For example, changes to the design can be implemented in realtime as a user makes various changes to various article characteristics.In still other cases, a system may not provide any previews of thecustomized article.

In some cases, a graphical interface system includes provisions to allowa customer to submit a selected customized article type to a vendor.Generally, a graphical interface system may allow a customer to submit aselected customized article type in any manner. In some embodiments, acustomer may manipulate a slider to create a customized article type andthen submit the created customized article type by depressing a buttonor graphic within the graphical interface system. Referring back to FIG.5, a customer may manipulate slider 515 to create a customized articletype and then submit the customized article type by depressing submitbutton 599. In other embodiments, a customer may use a selection tool tosubmit a customized article type to a vendor. Referring to FIG. 9, in analternative embodiment, a customer may manipulate selection tool 920 tosubmit a customized article type to a vendor. In this case, the customersubmits fourth customized article type 954 to the vendor formanufacturing.

After a vendor receives a customized article type from a customer, thevendor manufactures a pair of footwear with the customized article type.FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of manufactured pair offootwear 1100 with fourth customized article type 954 as shown in FIG.9. Once pair of footwear 1100 has been manufactured, it may be inspectedfor quality by the vendor. During this inspection, the manufactured pairof footwear 1100 may be compared to fourth customized article type 954as shown in FIG. 9. Therefore, pair of footwear 1100 is not onlyinspected for structural integrity, but also for design accuracy.Finally, once pair of footwear 1100 has passed inspection, pair offootwear 1100 may be shipped to a pre-designated shipping address.

In some cases, a customer may create a customized article type with anintention that articles of footwear manufactured from that customizedarticle type are relatively unique. Furthermore, the unique nature of anarticle of footwear manufactured from a customized article type may be adesirable feature of the process of creating a customized article type.In other words, a customer may engage in the process of creating acustomized article type with a purpose to create a customized articletype that is exclusive.

Generally, a customized article type may be exclusive if articles offootwear manufactured from the customized article type are notrelatively common. In some embodiments, a customization system mayimplement a limit on the number of articles of footwear that may bemanufactured from a customized article type. This may provideexclusivity to a customized article type.

FIG. 16 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a portion of database1200 that may be internal to a vendor of a customization system. In thisembodiment, database 1200 includes entries for customized article type1201, times used 1202 and customized type limit 1203. In someembodiments, database 1200 may include additional and/or differentattributes. For example, in some cases, database 1200 may includeentries that determine if a customized article type has a customizedtype limit.

In some cases, customized article type 1201 may include entries for allcustomized article types created by a customization system. Furthermore,times used 1202 includes entries for the number of times an article offootwear of a particular customized article type has been manufactured.Finally, customized type limit 1203 may include a pre-determined limitfor the number of times a customized article type may be manufactured.In some cases, the same pre-determined limit may be applied to allcustomized article types. In other cases, different pre-determinedlimits may be entered in customized type limit 1203 and associated withdifferent customized article types.

In this exemplary embodiment, database 1200 includes three customizedarticle types. In particular, database 1200 indicates that firstcustomized article type 1211 has been used 221 times and has a limit of250. Similarly, database 1200 includes second customized article type1212 with times used 1202 entered as 300 and customized type limit 1203listed as 500. Likewise, customized article type 1201 includes thirdcustomized article type 1213 with times used 1202 indicating 54 uses andcustomized type limit 1203 indicating 75.

In some cases, database 1200 may be associated with a graphicalinterface system in order to enforce exclusivity of customized articletypes. For example, a graphical interface system associated with acustomization system may allow 29 more selections of first customizedarticle type 1211 in order to limit the selection of first customizedarticle type 1211 to 250 selections. With this configuration, database1200 may support the exclusivity of customized article types.

Generally, a customization system may enforce exclusivity of customizedarticle types in any manner. In some embodiments, a graphical interfacesystem may not display a customized article type that has reached apre-determined limit. In other embodiments, a graphical interface systemmay not permit the selection of a customized article type that hasreached a pre-determined limit.

FIG. 17 is an exemplary embodiment of graphical interface system 1300.Generally, graphical interface system 1300 may be substantially similarto the alternative embodiment of graphical interface system 400 in FIG.9. In particular, graphical interface system 1300 may display second setof customized article types 1302 following the selection of a family ofarticle types.

In this embodiment, second set of customized article types 1302 includesfive customized article types. However, third customized article type1303 is displayed in phantom by graphical interface system 1300. Inaddition, text 1380 displayed by graphical interface system 1300indicates that third customized article type 1303 is no longeravailable. In some cases, graphical interface system 1300 displays thirdcustomized article type 1303 in phantom because a limit associated withthird customized article type 1303 has been reached. Using thisconfiguration, the exclusivity of third customized article type 1303 maybe ensured.

FIG. 18 is an embodiment of process 1400 that may be executed topreserve exclusivity of customized article types. In some embodiments,process 1400 may be executed by customization system 101. In some cases,process 1400 may be executed by graphical interface system 1300.

During first step 1402, graphical interface system 1300 may receive acustomized article type request. In some cases, this request may occurfollowing the selection of a family of article types and prior to thedisplay of a set of customized article types associated with the familyof article types. In other cases, the customized article type requestmay be received when a customer manipulates a slider, for example, andindicates a graphical position that may be associated with thecustomized article type. In still other cases, the customized articletype request may be received when a customer attempts to submit thecustomized article type for manufacture.

After receiving a customized article type request in first step 1402,graphical interface system 1300 determines if the customized articletype is associated with a customized type limit during second step 1404.If the customized article type is not associated with a customized typelimit, graphical interface system 1300 continues to fourth step 1408.During fourth step 1408, graphical interface system 1300 continues thecustomization process.

However, if graphical interface system 1300 determines that a customizedarticle type is associated with a customized type limit during secondstep 1404, graphical interface system 1300 proceeds to third step 1406.During third step 1406, graphical interface system 1300 checks if thecustomized article type has reached the customized type limit. In somecases, graphical interface system 1300 may query a database such asdatabase 1200 to ascertain the customized type limit for the requestedcustomized article type. If the requested customized article type hasnot reached the customized type limit, graphical interface system 1300proceeds to fourth step 1408 and continues the customization process.

If graphical interface system 1300 determines in third step 1406 thatthe customized article type has reached the customized type limit,graphical interface system 1300 prompts the customer to select anothercustomized article type in fifth step 1410. Following fifth step 1410,graphical interface system 1300 prevents the use of the customizedarticle type in sixth step 1412. With this process, the exclusivity ofthe customized article type may be ensured.

FIG. 19 illustrates an embodiment of a process for providing a user witharticle type sharing options. In some cases, some of the following stepscould be performed by a graphical interface system. In other cases, someof the following steps could be performed by any other system, includingany system associated with a proprietor. Moreover, in some cases, somesteps may be performed by a graphical interface system while other stepscould be performed by another system. It will be further understood thatsome of the following steps may be optional. In addition, the order ofsteps could vary in any manner in other embodiments.

In step 1902, a graphic interface system may receive a user customizedarticle type. The customized article type may be created using any ofthe methods described above as well as any other known methods formaking article types. Next, in step 1904, the graphical interface systemdetermines if the customized article type has been used before. If thecustomized article type has been used before, the system continues tostep 1908 where the customization process is continued. In this case,the user does not have the option to select sharing preferences sincethe article type is not unique to the user.

If, during step 1904, the graphic interface system determines that thecustomized article type has not been used before, the system may proceedto step 1906. In step 1906, the system may receive a user availabilitypreference. In some cases, the system can prompt the user with a messagesuch as “would you like to share this image?” In other cases, theavailability preference could be retrieved from a user profile or otherpreviously stored information.

Next, in step 1910, the graphical interface system may determine if theuser wants to share the customized article type. This decision is basedon the information received in step 1906. If the user has selected toshare the customized article type, the graphical interface system mayproceed to step 1912. In step 1912, the graphic interface system allowsthe customized article type to be used by other users or customers ofthe system.

If, during step 1910, the graphical interface system determines that theuser does not want to share the customized article type, the system mayproceed to step 1914. In step 1914, the graphical interface system mayprevent other users from using the customized article type.

By allowing a user to share or not to share a customized article type,the user is able to control the exclusivity of the customized articletype. This method allows users to create unique or truly “one of a kind”articles.

While various embodiments of the invention have been described, thedescription is intended to be exemplary rather than limiting and it willbe apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many moreembodiments and implementations are possible that are within the scopeof the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be restrictedexcept in light of the attached claims and their equivalents. Also,various modifications and changes may be made within the scope of theattached claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of customization for an article offootwear, comprising: receiving a selected family of article types;providing a set of article types according to the selected family ofarticle types, wherein information related to the set of article typesis graphically representing the set of article types within a graphicalinterface system of a customization system; receiving a user-selectedarticle type from the set of article types; determining whether theuser-selected article type has reached a customized type limit; andmanufacturing, if the user-selected article type has not reached acustomized type limit, the article of footwear corresponding to theuser-selected article type.
 2. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving a user availability preference related to theuser-selected article type; and providing access to the user-selectedarticle type based upon the user availability preference.
 3. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the information related to the set ofarticle types is configured to be sent to a web browser.
 4. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the information related to the set ofarticle types is configured to be sent to the graphical interface systemrunning on a remote device.
 5. The method according to claim 1, whereinthe information related to the set of article types is configured to besent to the graphical interface system running on a cell phone.
 6. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the selected family of articletypes have different insole geometries.
 7. A method of customization foran article of footwear, comprising: receiving, using a graphicalinterface system of a customization system, a selected family of articletypes; providing a set of article types according to the selected familyof article types, wherein information related to the set of articletypes is graphically representing the set of article types within thegraphical interface system of the customization system; receiving auser-selected article type from the set of article types; determiningwhether the user-selected article type has reached a customized typelimit; and sending to a manufacturer, if the user-selected article typehas not reached a customized type limit, information about the articleof footwear corresponding to the user-selected article type.
 8. Themethod according to claim 7, further comprising: receiving a useravailability preference related to the user-selected article type; andproviding access to the user-selected article type based upon the useravailability preference.
 9. The method according to claim 7, wherein theinformation related to the set of article types is configured to be sentto a web browser.
 10. The method according to claim 7, wherein theinformation related to the set of article types is configured to be sentto the graphical interface system running on a remote device.
 11. Themethod according to claim 7, wherein the information related to the setof article types is configured to be sent to the graphical interfacesystem running on a cell phone.
 12. The method according to claim 7,wherein the selected family of article types share a similar colorscheme.
 13. A method of customization for an article of footwear,comprising: providing a set of article types, wherein informationrelated to the set of article types is graphically representing the setof article types within a graphical interface system of a customizationsystem; receiving, using the graphical interface system of thecustomization system, a user-selected article type from the set ofarticle types; providing a group of variable article characteristics forthe user-selected article type, each variable article characteristic inthe group of variable article characteristics having a range of values;receiving information related to a user-selected article characteristicfor at least one variable article characteristic in the group ofvariable article characteristics; determining whether the user-selectedarticle characteristic has reached a customized type limit; andcommunicating to a manufacturer, the information related to the articleof footwear corresponding to the user-selected article type.
 14. Themethod according to claim 13, further comprising: receiving a useravailability preference related to the user-selected article type; andproviding access to the user-selected article type based upon the useravailability preference.
 15. The method according to claim 13, whereinthe information related to the set of article types is configured to besent to a web browser.
 16. The method according to claim 13, wherein theinformation related to the set of article types is configured to be sentto the graphical interface system running on a remote device.
 17. Themethod according to claim 13, wherein the information related to the setof article types is configured to be sent to the graphical interfacesystem running on a cell phone.
 18. The method according to claim 13,wherein the at least one of the group of variable articlecharacteristics in the group of variable article characteristics is aheight for a sole of the article of footwear.